Tuesday
21st January 2003
At last we found the final resting place of my grandfather Samuel Taylor, who
had been killed in the early hours of the Battle of Cambrai in 1917.

Arriving
in the Belgian port of Zeebrugge on Tuesday morning, we had a fairly short drive
on relatively quiet roads into France. The town of Cambrai, the battle for which
was to cost Sam Taylor his life, was to be our base for two nights, and we arrived
there in a little over two hours.

Two things
both surprised and moved us on our journey. The first was the sheer number of
military cemeteries. In every town and village we passed through there were
numerous signs pointing the way to their local cemeteries, and most places seemed
to have more than one of them. It was the first realisation that we were travelling
through the area of some of the bloodiest fighting. Another thing which struck
us was the fact that they were all very well maintained. Although I had seen
many news items which showed the cemeteries in this condition, it was both surprising
and pleasing to note that every one was the same. On our trip we were to see
the care with which this work was carried out.

The first
item on our agenda was to find a hotel in Cambrai. That didn't cause a problem
at this time of the year, and by lunchtime we had checked in and were ready
for what the trip was really about. After purchasing a couple of detailed maps
of the area, we left Cambrai along the Avenue de la Victoire to join the N44
running south west from the town. Bearing right onto the D917, we soon came
to the sign pointing right towards the small village of Villers-Plouich. In
less than a kilometre we came to the cemetery itself. The usual Commonwealth
War Graves Commission green sign pointed left down a narrow farm track to 'Fifteen
Ravine British Cemetery'.

The
Great Cross

Fifteen
Ravine takes its' name from an area marked on British Army maps of the
time. As we had come to expect it's a beautifully maintained site (exactly
as all the others we had passed en route) and is in a really quiet and
peaceful location.

We
had previously looked at the Commonwealth War Graves Commisssion website
and found the location of Sam's grave together with a plan of the cemetery.
It wasn't strictly necessary because, as at all the locations we were
to visit, all the information was on site anyway, and it took only a matter
of minutes before we were standing in front of it. I can only say that
it was a very moving experience and I am glad that Lynne and I had made
the visit which my late mother had been unable to do.

It was a bright
and sunny afternoon although very cold with a strong wind, but we spent
quite a long time there wandering around the cemetery and returning
periodically to Sam's grave. His army identity disk had been returned
to my grandmother following his death, and I had taken it with me to
France. It brought more of a personal touch to the occasion knowing
that he had been wearing it at the time of his death more than 85 years
ago.

After taking lots
of photographs and video film the time came for us to go, although we
planned to return for a final time in a couple of days before making
our way back to Zeebrugge. Before we did leave we signed the visitor's
book and read through most of the earlier entries. As we were quite
cold we decided to have a look at Villers-Plouich and take advantage
of any cafe facilities which there may be, so it was back to the car
and the very short drive to the tiny village.

We were quite amused
at first to find that a small square in the village was named 'Place
de Wandsworth' after the London Borough of Wandsworth. Apparently this
was due to the fact that the 'Wandsworth Pals' Battalion had spent much
time in the area in 1917. They had taken the village in April of that
year, during which operation one of their men was awarded the Victoria
Cross, and they then spent the next few months defending it.

After the war, Wandsworth
Council was keen to maintain the links which had developed and in 1920
adopted Villers-Plouich which had been left totally devastated during
the conflict. A public collection in Britain raised money to help with
the village's rebuilding and strong ties between the two exist to this
day.

Villers-Plouiche
sketch by local artist. The town hall is in the foreground, with the Church
behind.

The Council's link
with this small village in northern France stretches back over 80 years.
In 1919 the new Mayor of Wandsworth was quick to forge links with the
community that the 13th East Surreys had freed from German occupation
and where Corporal Foster had won his Victoria Cross (see photos). The
British League of Help was a scheme whereby British towns and cities
could 'adopt' and help to fund the restoration of a devastated French
or Belgium community. On 25 September 1920 Wandsworth Council formally
adopted Villers-Plouich, which had been left utterly ruined by the war.
Some £1200 was collected from private donations and sent to the
French mayor to assist with rebuilding.